Health & Wellness
Discovery and Development of Health Products (DDHP):
Terrestrial Component
Irene Villasenor, PhD 1 | Evangeline C. Amor, PhD 1 | Portia Mahal G. Sabido, PhD 1 | Reynaldo L.
Garcia, PhD 2 | Fabian Antonio M. Dayrit, PhD 3
1 Institute of Chemistry, UP Diliman
2 National Institute of Molecular Biology and Biotechnology, UP Diliman
3 Department of Chemistry, Ateneo de Manila University
E-mail: [email protected]
Drug discovery and development is one of the research priorities outlined in the
country’s Harmonized National Research and Development Agenda for 2017 –
2022. The Tuklas Lunas Program is under the Philippine Council for Health
Research and Development (PCHRD) and is funded by the same organization
and the Department of Science and Technology (DOST).
In line with this research agenda, and taking advantage of the Philippines’ rich
biodiversity, the Discovery and Development of Health Products (DDHP)
program was conceived. The DDHP is a two-pronged program that aims to
produce herbal products and drug candidates to address a variety of diseases.
A network of institutions nationwide collects indigenous plants, which are then
extracted and subjected to disease-specific tests to validate their bioactivity.
Bioactive extracts are subjected to further testing for toxicity. The bioactivities of
non-toxic extracts are then confirmed using cell-based tests. The resulting extracts
may then be formulated into dosage forms for pre-clinical and clinical studies
(herbal track) or purified to generate bioactive hits that may be used as templates
to synthesize with lead compounds (drug track). The bioactive, non-toxic
synthetic lead compounds are then subjected to ADME (absorption, distribution,
metabolism, excretion) to investigate their drug-like properties.
The researchers have created a database of over 2,400 plants, and formulated 28
herbal dosage forms for diseases, including diabetes, hypertension, and gout; as
well as for inflammation and pain. The project has also led to the synthesis of 20
drug lead compounds, which are now undergoing testing for potential
pharmacological applications.
The project is still ongoing, but the positive results this far could lead to the entry
of new drug products into the market that can serve as effective and affordable
alternatives to imported medicines, especially in rural areas. The DDHP also
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